Cassidy's Science Fair Project


Problem Scenario

It was brought to my attention that if bread is left out it tends to grow mold faster. I am doing this experiment to find out if there is a type of bread that does not grow mold as much and fast as other types.

Broad Question

How does the type of bread affect mold growth?

Specific Question

Does the type of bread affect the rate in which mold grows?

Hypothesis

It is hypothesized that Wheat and Multi-Grain bread will have a larger amount of mold than White bread.

Graph of Hypothesis


Variables

Independent Variable:

Type of bread

Dependent Variable:

Amount of mold

Variables That Need To Be Controlled:

Time allowed for growth and Conditions of bread

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation

Spore: a type of fungus that floats through the air and settles on food.
Mold: any of various fungi that often causes disintegration of a organic matter.




General Plan

My general plan is to set up my project and every week for 3 weeks I will collect data using the cm2 grid.

Potential Problems And Solutions

Some potential problems would be that no mold will grow, a solution to this problem would be to write a conclusion about how mold does not grow.
Safety Or Environmental Concerns
Wear gloves when measuring mold. Do not put the mold covered bread close to your mouth or face. Wash all materials used and get ride of bread when experiment is finished.

Experimental Design

(add the correct headings from the experimental design page before beginning)

Controlled, manipulated experiment

Number Of Trials:

I conducted three different trials.

Number Of Subjects In Each trial:

1 subject.

When data will be collected

The data will be collected in four weeks so the bread will have time to mold.

Number of Observations:

I observed the bread every week for four weeks.

Where will data be collected:?

The data will be collected at my house.

Resources and Budget Table

Item
Where will you get this?
Estimated cost
Bread
Shaws
$10.00
Poster board
Staples
$5.00
Measuring grid
My house
$0.00
Camera
My house
$0.00

Data Table


Weeks
White
Wheat
Multi-Grain
Week 1
0
-
-
0
-
-
0
-
-
Week 2
0
-
-
0
-
-
0
-
-
Week 3
1
-
-
0
-
-
1
-
-
Week 4
46
- -

4
-
-
7
-
-

Time Line


casd-tem2_timline.JPG

Background information


There are several types of mold that grows on bread. Bread mold is a simple fungus that takes food and nutrients from the bread and damages the breads surface.
I preformed this experiment to find out which type of bread grew the most mold the fastest. I used three different types of bread White, wheat and Multi-Grain.
Mold will grow immediately after spores are attached to the item. A spore will float around until it lands on something, and if that something is food, that spore will germinate and grow into a nice healthy fungus.Mold can easily grow over night or 24 to 48 hours. Food seems to become moldy more quickly in the summer than in the winter when it is colder. Moisture is important because it makes mold grow faster. Refrigeration slows the growth of mold, and freezing is effective in preventing mold.
There are many types of mold that grow on bread. Penicillium looks like blue-green fuzzy patches of colonies with white borders. Rhizomes stolonifer are one of the most common and fastest growing fungi. These are the most common types of mold that grows on bread.
While growing mold on bread it tends to grow faster when it is left out. Although growth of this mold makes the bread land in the trash bin, bread mold can be of great industrial use.


References

Detailed Procedure

(How I am going to set up the project)
.get three pieces of each type of bread
.let them sit for 2-3 weeks
.measure amount of mold using a cm2 grid
.compare conditions of bread with the other types
.take a picture of each type of bread
(How I will collect data)
.Measure amount of mold (cm2) on each type of bread
.wait 2-4 weeks to see enough of a difference
.compare conditions by collecting data with the cm2 grid
.take a picture confirming data

Diagram


Photo List

These are not actually photos from my experiment although, this is what they would have looked like.
mold_3.jpeg moldybread2.jpeg mold_growth.jpg






Results

All Raw Data


Multi-Grain
Wheat
White
Weeks
0 cm2
0 cm2
0 cm2
Week 1
0 cm2
0 cm2
0 cm2
Week 2
0 cm2
0 cm2
0 cm2
Week 3
1 cm2
0cm2
1 cm2
week4
7 cm2
4 cm2
43 cm2

Graphs


Photos







Data Analysis

For the first two weeks no mold was grown on any of the types of bread. White bread grew the most in the four weeks I let them sit out, it grew 43 (cm2). Wheat bread did not grow mold until the last week, and it only grew 4 (cm2). Lastly, Multi-Grain grew only 7 (cm2).

Conclusion

It is hypothesized that Wheat and Multi-Grain bread will grow more mold than White bread. From this experiment I can conclude that my hypothesis was wrong. White bread grew more mold than Wheat or Multi-Grain bread.


Discussion

My experiment had some minor problems, such as for the first 2 to 3 weeks there was no mold growth. This experiment could be improved because for the first few weeks I had the bread closed off in bags but then I opened them and they seemed to have an easier time at growing mold. This data could be very useful to others because I left my bread out in the open so a mold spore could land on it and grow mold, to prevent this from happening keep bread in a contained space.

Benefit to Community and/or Science

  • To find how long it takes to grow mold on a certain amount of time.
  • Also, where the best environment is to grow mold.
  • What is the best place to grow it on.


Abstract

Does the type of bread affect the rate in which mold grows? It is hypothesized that Wheat and Multi-Grain larger amount of bread than White bread. Mold will grow immediately after spores are attached to the item. Mold can easily grow over night or 24 to 48 hours. The type of fungus that grows on bread is called a spore. Moisture is important because it makes mold grow faster. A green type of mold is called Penicillin. Bread mold is actually a plant. I got three pieces of each type of bread and let them sit for 2-4 weeks. I measured the amount of mold using a cm2 grid then compared the conditions of the bread with the other types. After all of that take I took a picture of each type of bread. The results of this experiment was surprising, White bread grew more than any of the bread. Multi-Grain looks like it is a different type of mold growing than the White bread. Finally White had the most amount of mold, 42 cm2 and the mold was a light green and yellow color.